Now that the 2017-18 Syracuse basketball campaign is over, where would you place Jim Boeheim’s coaching job this season among his 42 years as head coach?
I’m still slightly bitter about the Syracuse basketball painstaking loss to Duke in the Sweet 16 of the 2018 NCAA Tournament. Not simply because Syracuse lost, but due to the fact that we nearly pulled off the massive upset.
A few less turnovers, a couple of more trips to the charity stripe, or a handful of missed dunks turned into makes, and the ‘Cuse could definitely have advanced to the Elite Eight.
Regardless, this term that recently ended proved delightful, since the Orange had a ridiculously inexperienced and thin roster, as well as extremely low expectations, yet they reached the second weekend of the Big Dance.
So with time available to reflect, I have to ask myself, and my fellow Syracuse fanatics: where does 2017-18 rank among Jim Boeheim’s best-coaching acts during his more than 40 years at the helm on the Hill?
What are the criteria for evaluating Boeheim’s coaching performances? People can have a wide range of views on this. Dominance in the non-conference slate and the regular season can be important, but there’s also the Big East and/or Atlantic Coast Conference tourneys. Finally, we of course can’t forget about March Madness.
Boeheim has gone on record in saying that your success is defined by how well you do in the NCAA Tournament. I would tend to agree. However, we should keep in mind what kind of personnel Boeheim has possessed in any given year. Are there future NBA players? Lottery picks? A deep bench?
Factoring all of this into the equation, I am fairly adamant in declaring that, given what JB had in 2017-18, this is perhaps one of the eight most-impressive coaching accomplishments in his tenure.
I feel that trying to rank these feats is a tad tiresome, so I’m going to sort them, chronologically. If you think I’m taking the easy way out, and that I’m lazy, don’t fret: I concur.
1986-87
This group sported a 31-7 mark, tying for first in the Big East and getting to the conference’s post-season title game, where it fell to Georgetown. Yuck.
As a No. 2 seed in the East Region of the NCAA Tournament, the ‘Cuse beat No. 1 seed North Carolina in the Elite Eight and Big East rival Providence, a No. 6 seed, in the national semi-finals. In the championship contest, the first appearance for Boeheim, the Orange faced off with No. 1 seed Indiana.
Missed free throws late in regulation by our boys and a dagger corner jumper from Keith Smart with only several seconds to go resulted in the Hoosiers prevailing by one point. Heart-break city for JB, unfortunately. Key contributors for this SU crew included Rony Seikaly, Sherman Douglas, Greg Monroe, Howard Triche and Derrick Coleman.
1995-96
This wonderful campaign by Syracuse transpired the year before I started in Central New York, and it’s an absolute bummer that I didn’t get to experience the craziness of Marshall Street amid the Orange’s insane March Madness journey.
The ‘Cuse finished 29–9, getting to the semi-finals of the Big East Tournament, where Connecticut knocked off SU. In the Big Dance, as a No. 4 seed in the West Region, Syracuse encountered No. 8 seed Georgia in the Sweet 16, easily one of the most-memorable tourney clashes for the ‘Cuse of all-time.
Jason Cipolla nailed a jump-shot at the end of regulation to force an extra session, then SU legend John Wallace nailed a 3-pointer with about two seconds left to lift Syracuse to a two-point triumph. The ‘Cuse would outlast No. 2 seed Kansas in the Elite Eight and No. 5 seed Mississippi State in the Final Four, setting up a title-game showdown with No. 1 seed Kentucky, led by head coach Rick Pitino, a former Boeheim assistant, and a multitude of future NBA studs.
A large underdog, the ‘Cuse hung around with the Wildcats, closing to within two points late in the affair, but Kentucky eventually collected a nine-point victory.
2002-03
Do I really need to provide details on what happened in this magical year? Okay, fine. Syracuse, under the guidance of freshmen sensations Carmelo Anthony and Gerry McNamara, along with Hakim Warrick and others, produced a 30-5 overall record and got Boeheim his first, and only, national championship.
The No. 3 seed in the NCAA Tournament’s East Region, the Orange blew past No. 1 seed Oklahoma in the Elite Eight to reach the Final Four. In the national semi-finals, SU won against another No. 1 seed from the Big 12, Texas, to help JB advance to a third title tilt, this time around versus No. 2 seed Kansas and its storied head coach, Roy Williams.
McNamara caught fire in the first half against the Jayhawks, making a bunch of 3-pointers. I can’t even begin to tell you how nervous I felt as Kansas chipped away at our lead after intermission. However, Warrick’s monumental block with 1.5 seconds remaining enabled Syracuse to escape, 81-78. Anthony got named the tourney’s Most Outstanding Player, ‘Cuse Nation went nuts, and I’m pretty sure that I didn’t sleep at all that night. Just beautiful.
2009-10
By far and away, this is one of my favorite SU teams in history. Widely projected to finish the campaign in the middle of the league, the Orange captured the Big East regular-season title, achieved its first No. 1 ranking in the AP Poll dating back to 1989-90, and wrapped up this stanza at 30-5.
Boeheim received several national coach of the year honors, and he absolutely deserved them. Among the standouts on this roster are Arinze Onuaku, Andy Rautins, Wes Johnson, Rick Jackson and Brandon Triche.
The No. 1 seed in the West Region of the NCAA tourney, I honestly thought this bunch would get JB his second national championship, but Onuaku suffered a most-unfortunate injury in the quarter-finals of the Big East Tournament. In the Sweet 16 against the No. 5 seed Butler, Syracuse had a small, yet late, lead versus the Bulldogs, but the ‘Cuse couldn’t hold on, losing by four points.
What might have been if Onuaku didn’t go down? We’ll never know, and although SU “only” reached the regional semi-finals, Boeheim did a masterful job guiding a group with middling expectations that managed to generate one of the most-prosperous regular seasons in his career.
2011-12
Unless I’m reviewing Boeheim’s tenure at Syracuse incorrectly, his most-prolific regular season occurred during this stanza, when the Orange went 30-1, and 17-1 in the Big East (securing the conference crown), and fell just one time, at Notre Dame.
By the time that the NCAA Tournament rolled around, SU had a mark of 31-2 and got slotted as the No. 1 seed in the East Region. The ‘Cuse also collected the number-one national ranking for close to a dozen weeks. All in all, as dominant as you can get for a JB-led squad.
This outfit had ridiculous talent: Brandon Triche, Scoop Jardine, Kris Joseph, C.J. Fair, Dion Waiters (a future lottery pick, who came off the bench for Syracuse), Rakeem Christmas, James Southerland, Michael Carter-Williams and the late Fab Melo, among others. Wowsers.
Sadly, Melo got ruled ineligible right before the Big Dance began. We still managed to squeak by No. 4 seed Wisconsin to reach the Elite Eight, however, in that contest, versus No. 2 seed Ohio State, SU got pummeled inside. Not having Melo clearly proved a big difference in a 77-70 defeat. Similar to the 2010 March Madness, I thought the ‘Cuse had a ticket punched to the 2012 Final Four, but some unfortunate circumstances arose yet again. Regardless, the Orange in 2011-12, which ended its term at 34-3, is one of Boeheim’s best bunches in program history.
2012-13
Syracuse’s final year in the Big East proved one of its most memorable. Experts pegged this team as one of the top-10 schools in the country before the season commenced, given the prior term’s outcome and the fact that SU’s roster, despite seeing some key parts go, continued to ooze with talent.
The Orange tied for fourth in the regular campaign, and I despise mentioning a 61-39 drubbing at the hands of Georgetown in Washington, D.C. – the last regular-season Big East encounter for the ‘Cuse.
Thankfully, we exacted revenge on the hated Hoyas in the conference tourney, and our run to the title game, where we lost to Louisville, propelled Syracuse to the No. 4 seed in the East Region of the NCAA Tournament.
During the Big Dance, SU’s 2-3 zone absolutely demolished its initial opponents, as the Orange upset No. 1 seed Indiana in the Sweet 16 and absolutely crushed No. 3 seed Marquette in the Elite Eight. I attended the contest versus the Golden Eagles, held in our nation’s capital. As the game winded down, and it became clear that my alma mater would reach its first Final Four since 2003, I’ve honestly never screamed so loud, save for when we won it all 10 years earlier. At the national semi-finals in Atlanta, where I also watched in person, Syracuse would get defeated in a close five-point affair by fellow No. 4 seed Michigan. I’d like to add that the charge call on Brandon Triche near the end was absolute, utter non-sense. I felt so bummed, yet quite proud, of what SU did in this NCAA tourney, and it closed this stanza at 30-10.
2015-16
For me, Syracuse’s splendid adventure during this season, in which Boeheim recorded his fifth Final Four, might represent his most-tremendous coaching performance ever. Why? Because SU had a completely lackluster regular term in the Atlantic Coast Conference, it failed to notch a victory in the post-season conference tourney, and virtually everyone across the country complained when the ‘Cuse had its name called on Selection Sunday.
Boy oh boy, did the Orange make the most of its entrance into the Big Dance. The No. 10 seed in the Midwest Region, we whipped No. 7 seed Dayton to get things going, which I found particularly sweet, since that group had upset us two years earlier in the 2014 NCAA Tournament.
We totally blew out No. 15 seed Middle Tennessee State, then inched past No. 11 seed Gonzaga in the Sweet 16. That set up an epic Elite Eight match-up with No. 1 seed and fellow ACC member, Virginia. The Cavaliers smoked us for more than 30 minutes, but JB put on the full-court press, and that completely rattled UVA.
A 29-8 outburst to finish the contest off resulted in a six-point triumph for Syracuse, sending the Orange to a wildly unexpected march to the national semi-finals. No. 1 seed North Carolina, also out of the ACC, then dispatched of the ‘Cuse without much trouble at all in the Final Four, ending our tremendous campaign at 23-14. No one thought that Syracuse deserved to play in the NCAA tourney, so for Boeheim to get his crew, which had some talent but far less than in previous stanzas, to the Final Four is undeniably a stellar coaching deed.
2017-18
SU had a disappointing 19-15 record in 2016-17, including a second-round NIT exit. With Taurean Thompson surprisingly deciding to leave Central New York for Seton Hall, and a host of other guys graduating or declaring early for the pros, expectations on the Hill proved drastically low, to put it mildly.
Then, about a half-dozen games in, Geno Thorpe also bolted. At that juncture, the ‘Cuse possessed a roster with a ton of freshmen and, as injuries hampered the squad on several occasions, little to no depth at times. No worries. Iron men such as Oshae Brissett, Tyus Battle and Frank Howard commenced seeing close to 40 minutes of action during almost every contest.
Syracuse had a decent non-conference go of it, defeating teams like Buffalo, Connecticut, Georgetown (haha) and Maryland. We secured vital road successes in the ACC against Louisville and Miami. And, in our final regular-season tilt, we notched a victory versus a top-25 outfit, Clemson, for the first time in this campaign. Still, at 19-12 overall and 8-10 in conference play, once again we had to sweat out Selection Sunday. Much to the chagrin of pundits all across the land, the Orange received the last at-large invite to the Big Dance. Yay!
Next: Syracuse Football: An inside look at SU star quarterback Eric Dungey
Like in years past, we then made the most of our inclusion, defeating No. 11 seed Arizona State in the First Four, along with No. 6 seed TCU and No. 3 seed Michigan State. That led to a Sweet 16 showdown with No. 2 seed and ACC nemesis, Duke. Syracuse totally hung with the Blue Devils until the end, but we ultimately lost by four points. Pretty admirable stuff from such a gritty and tough group, with SU finishing at 23-14. Please also note that, as a double-digit seed in the NCAA Tournament (2016 and 2018), Boeheim is 7-2. You can’t really ask for more than that, and this season which recently concluded is among the most-remarkable stints from the legendary JB in his 42 years steering the ‘Cuse basketball machine.